Tag Archives: Culture

A Psychedelic Mind: Metaphysics and Psychiatry

This article examines whether “mind altering” substances transcend the experiences of consciousness or are they mere chemicals that release or inhibit the flow of neurotransmitters in the brain. The central question would be to investigate the metaphysical nature of mind-altering substances and whether they truly are ‘revelations’ transcending the crisis of existence or whether they prevent us from seeing our normal reality and thus are a delusional escape. The phenomenological account of a drug induced substance would allow for the transcendental or ‘higher’ self-consciousness felt during such an experience to be real and the research on the use of psychedelic substances in psychiatric therapy might prove drugs to be a novel means of discovering the metaphysical and neurological realities of consciousness. Thus, my aim is to study if psychedelics help us reach the limits of our experience in time and space and enter into the mystical and metaphysical realms of the nature of the ‘self’, its consciousness, realism/ anti realism of its existence and the world experienced by it.

The Ethical Crossroads of AI Consciousness: Are We Ready for Sentient Machines?

This article explores the ethical, scientific, and philosophical implications of AI consciousness, analyzing whether artificial intelligence could ever develop self-awareness and what that would mean for society. It examines key theories of consciousness, governance challenges, and the potential redefinition of human identity in a world where intelligence is no longer exclusively biological. With AI advancing rapidly, policymakers must consider legal rights, autonomy, and ethical safeguards before AI forces an answer upon us. As this frontier approaches, the article argues that humanity must confront the complexities of coexistence with sentient machines.

The most-viewed painting in the world – a myth?

Florian Coulmas is Professor emeritus of Japanese Society and Sociolinguistics at the IN-EAST Institute of East Asian Studies at Duisburg-Essen University. He has published numerous books, including one about Hiroshima, where he once lived. In 2016, he was awarded the Meyer-Struckmann-Prize for Research in Arts and Social Sciences. More about him can be found here:
https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/soci-2025-0003/html?lang=de&srsltid=AfmBOorWLOi61PBlP66wAMDb4vtc7hgp_CsTwP6ZgXXZSGS9CSpjBsSt

The Inward Spiral of Time: Remembering Ourselves Back to the Source

This article by Dr. Domenico Meschino was written in collaboration with Omni Intelligence AI, a next-generation cognitive model for scientific reflection and research.
“In this piece, we present a groundbreaking model that challenges the traditional view of time as linear. Drawing from patterns observed in physics, biology, and cosmology — alongside recent advancements in nonlinear theories — the article argues that time operates as an inward spiral, not a straight arrow.
This model aligns with emerging discoveries in relativity, quantum entanglement, and dynamic systems theory, suggesting a fundamental rethinking of scientific paradigms across physics, psychology, and consciousness studies.”

What 70 years of AI on film can tell us about the human relationship with artificial intelligence

Paula Murphy is an Assistant Professor in the School of English in Dublin City University, specializing in popular film, especially film and technology, and Irish literature and film, with an emphasis on new and marginal voices.
“I have just published a book on representations of artificial intelligence in film, AI in the Movies, with Edinburgh University Press, and a number of related journal articles:
– ‘”You Feel Real to Me, Samantha”: The Matter of Technology in Spike Jonze’s Her’. In Technoculture: An Online Journal of Technology in Society, Vol 7, 2018.
– ‘“Through the Looking Glass”: Bodies of Data in Alex Garland’s Ex-Machina’. Film International, 17.3: 79-85.
-‘‘Writers and Writers of Writers: Creativity and Authorship in the First AI Novel’. Kritikos: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal of Postmodern Cultural Sound, Text and Image. Vol 19, Fall/ Winter, 2023.”

Where did the wonder go – and can AI help us find it?

Lucy Gill-Simmen is the Vice-Dean for Education and Student Experience and a Senior Lecturer in Marketing in the School of Business and Management at Royal Holloway, University of London. She has a passion for management education and seeks to provide the best and most equal education experience for all students. She holds both a MBA and a Ph.D. in Marketing from Imperial College Business School, London. Her pedagogic research interests lie in the development of human skills amongst students, devising inclusive feedback and assessment strategies, and values-based pedagogies for educating the ‘whole’ individual. She has published her work in pedagogy in a number of academic journals, and most recently published her case research in the world’s leading journal for case research; Case Research Journal. She is the Chair for the Academy of Marketing, Marketing Education Special Interest Group. In 2022, she was awarded the Global Women in Marketing Award for her role as a marketing educator.

6 ways AI can partner with us in creative inquiry, inspired by media theorist Marshall McLuhan

Gordon A. Gow is Director, Media & Technology Studies, University of Alberta
“I am a professor of media and communications at the University of Alberta, where I currently serve as Director of the Media & Technology Studies unit and hold a cross-appointment with the Department of Sociology. Before joining the University of Alberta in 2006, I was a Lecturer in the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics, where I directed the Graduate Programme in Media and Communications Regulation and Policy.
My research and teaching focus on the social impacts of digital media and technology. I lead collaborative projects on digital leadership and literacy, particularly through a technology stewardship initiative involving both Canadian and international partners. My areas of expertise include social media, communication for development, community informatics, the political economy of communication, communication policy and regulation, and science and technology studies.
I also have a longstanding interest in media ecology, with a particular focus on the work of Marshall McLuhan, Harold Innis, and others associated with the Toronto School of Communication.”

The Skin as a Living Canvas: Aging, Identity, and the Conscious Body

Dr. Nita Sharma Das is a Naturopathy expert, educator, award-winning author, and skincare formulator.

“This article explores the skin as a living interface where biology, consciousness, culture, and identity converge. Drawing upon evolutionary theories of aging by scientists such as Peter Medawar and Owen Jones, it reflects on how biological senescence is only one part of the human experience of aging. Integrating perspectives from naturopathy, psychological self-perception, and Indian cultural rituals, the piece reimagines skincare as a ritual of self-respect and self-awareness. Rather than resisting age, it proposes embracing it as a conscious journey—a philosophy I advocate through my work, my book Welcome to Second Spring, and my blog. The article calls for a new way of seeing the aging body not as a site of decline, but as a canvas of lived wisdom and evolving identity.”

Art illuminates the beauty of science – and could inspire the next generation of scientists young and old

Chris Curran is Professor and Director Neuroscience Program, Northern Kentucky University
“I received my PhD in Environmental Genetics & Molecular Toxicology with a focus on genetic susceptibility to developmental neurotoxicants. I trained under Dr. Daniel Nebert and continue to benefit from the knockout mice he generously donated while starting an independent research career at Northern Kentucky University. I am also grateful to NIEHS which has funded our research here at NKU and supported nearly 100 undergraduates directly or indirectly over the last 12 years. I am past president of the Society for Birth Defects Research and Prevention and represent BDRP on the FASEB Board of Directors. I also service as a Councilor for the Society of Toxicology and the Developmental Neurotoxicology Society.”